There’s really no shortcut on a transmission rebuild

Dear Car Talk

My father left his grandson his ’56 Ford Thunderbird. My nephew and a friend were restoring the car, but when they had the engine rebuilt, they didn’t bother rebuilding the transmission. Now the transmission is going out, and our mechanic, who takes care of his T-Bird, gave him the name of his transmission specialist. My nephew was told that this person can rebuild the transmission without taking it out of the car. I would really like a second opinion. Is this possible — completely rebuilding a transmission without dropping it out of the car? — James

If your nephew’s main concern is not spending much money, he can let this guy give it a try. It’s possible that he will get the transmission to function again, but it’ll be an incomplete job. Without removing the transmission, the front seal cannot be replaced, which, if it’s not leaking now, it may leak later. And you can’t replace the torque converter, which is a crucial transmission component.

What he’s probably going to do is remove and clean up the valve body, adjust the bands and change the filter and fluid. With luck, that could get the transmission working again and your nephew will be set for a while.

But if the transmission clutches are cooked, the gears are chewed up or the torque converter is failing, those cannot be repaired with the transmission still in the car. That would require removing the transmission and rebuilding it — if you can find the parts.

So before your nephew spends anything, I would suggest that he track down a local T-Bird club or the national club. Then ask those members how they approached this problem with their T-Birds. If there are 15 owners in the club, you’ll get the benefit of at least 15 experiences.

I suggest a total rebuild. That will cost more, but this car is a family heirloom and, presumably, your nephew plans to keep it for a long time.